Maximum sound insulation with maximum views and sunlight in Cologne Kalk

Creating residential space in densely built-up inner-city areas is not easy. Although these areas often have great potential, they are often “difficult” plots, with the added problem of noise pollution. This was the case in Cologne where, for the up-and-coming Kalk district, De Zwarte Hond made a design for high-quality homes, a day-care centre and green public areas as part of a competition.

The design emphasis is on minimising background noise. The windows in the living rooms and bedrooms must be able to be opened at any time of the day or night, so they cannot be oriented to the direction of the noise. The solution is a building with a distinctive prismatic form and with two façades that differ greatly from each other: maximum surface and maximum sunlight to the west, and maximum views with maximum noise protection to the east. The resulting building has a striking silhouette and accommodates nearly 140 homes.

Even though De Zwarte Hond did not win the competition, we are proud of the elaborated concept. We congratulate LK Architekten on their winning design.